Sports and music festivals are the new battleground for American Express and Chase in their pursuit of high-income cardholders

Danni SantanaSun, July 5, 2026 at 9:00 PM UTC

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American Express and Chase have the two top premier travel rewards credit cards in the industry — the American Express Platinum Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve. The annual fees for both cards went up in 2025 to $895 and $795, respectively.

The perks associated with the cards, such as travel, dining, and subscription credits, can help offset the high fees for customers. Cardholders also get access to luxury lounges, predominantly found at airports, which they can take advantage of instead of waiting at gates and paying for subpar airport food and drinks.

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However, as CNBC reports (1), lounges are now more commonly found outside of airports — at sporting events and music festivals that customers frequently visit.

As the two companies jockey for position to attract high-spending customers, these kinds of venues are becoming the new battleground for banks.

Lounges aren’t just at the airport anymore

Over the past year, American Express has opened temporary lounges at the U.S. Open tennis tournament, the Stagecoach music festival in California, and Formula 1 races around the world for Platinum cardholders, according to CNBC.

Chase Sapphire Reserve customers, on the other hand, were able to visit lounges at Lollapalooza, the Sundance Music Festival, and PGA Tour Events.

While brand activations at these events are usually accessible to all attendees, lounge access is reserved for premium cardholders. That difference helps create a sense of exclusivity because customers that carry a particular credit card in their wallet get perks others don’t.

“We find this customer to be very engaged,” Laura Picciano, general manager of Chase Sapphire,” told CNBC. “Once you get their business, there’s a lot of loyalty there. And so they’re an important segment to continue to nurture.”

Some lounges are also permanent. American Express, for example, has partnerships with 20 venues worldwide. Eight of them currently have lounges, including Hard Rock Stadium in Miami and the O2 arena in London. The Barclay’s Center in New York City is set to open one, as well (2).

For its part, Chase has opened Sapphire Reserve lounges at the Chicago Theatre and Madison Square Garden, home to the recently crowned NBA champions, the New York Knicks.

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Lounges are expensive to open, but attract high rollers

Make no mistake about it. Lounges are expensive to open, especially on a permanent basis.

“It’s very expensive, but I think what’s happening is that the issuers are finding that this is a premium differentiator,” Donald Fandetti, Managing Director of Consumer Finance Equity Research at Wells Fargo, told CNBC. “It’s all about providing these services and experiences that make it worth it to the cardholder to pay those annual fees.”

In addition to Chase and American Express, other banks like Citi and Capital One with their own premium rewards credit card options court wealthy customers who will pay the annual fees for the right to use the card — and also swipe or tap it a lot.

After all, affluent users — defined in a 2025 Mastercard report (3) as those with an income of $200,000 or more and at least $250,000 in assets — spend more than four times more than the general public on discretionary purchases.

In other words: Investing in lounge experiences on these customers is worth it because they’re willing to pay the annual fees and spend well more than enough to cover card companies’ investment costs thanks to merchant fees and interest buildup.

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CNBC (1); American Express (2); Mastercard (3)

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

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Source: “AOL Money”